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Date: Monday, January 1, 2001 
Question/Topic: Christmas foods 
Answer/Pointer: "Where Christmas foods really came from," by Burt Wolf. You know them as the foods your mother and grandmother put on the holiday table, and you continue that tradition today. But the Christmas delicacies you enjoy every year have a link with the more distant past. Gingerbread Cookies: The practice of baking cookies in creative shapes dates back to the pagan celebration of Julfest (a precursor of Christmas), during which the Germanic tribes sacrificed animals to their gods. The poor offered animal-shaped cookies. Instead. Candy Canes: These appeared in the 1670's, when a German choirmaster distributed them to quiet the children during the Christmas service. The candy's curved end symbolizes a shepherd's crook. Yule Log: Parisian pastry cooks began preparing this log-shaped cake around 1870, inspired by the logs burned in the fireplace on Christmas. Eggnog: This holiday elixir originated in Great Britain and was originally used for medicinal purposes, mainly because of its alcohol content. Source: McCall's, December 1992 
Librarian: LCLCPL 
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